Ja Rule and Billy McFarland, the organizers behind the disastrous Fyre Festival, are now under investigation by the FBI for possible mail, wire and securities fraud, according to the New York Times.
The ill-fated festival promised ticket holders that it would be a luxury affair, with catered meals and glamorous performances, but instead, people who had paid around $12,000 for a ticket arrived at the location to find that the festival had been canceled and the accommodations were nothing more than refugee tents and meals made of bread and cheese sandwiches.
Employees reportedly have not been paid for the work they put in, with one restaurant owner reportedly claiming to be owed $134,000, and even Blink-182, who were scheduled to headline the event, had issues, with equipment stuck in what they called “customs limbo.”
As a result of the complete disaster of the festival, Ja Rule and McFarland were hit with a $100 million federal class-action lawsuit claiming that the two of them knew beforehand that the festival would be a disaster.
“The festival’s lack of adequate food, water, shelter and medical care created a dangerous and panicked situation among attendees — suddenly finding themselves stranded on a remote island without basic provisions — that was closer to ‘The Hunger Games’ or ‘Lord of the Flies’ than Coachella,” the suit claimed.
A second suit was filed shortly thereafter accusing Ja Rule and McFarland of luring ticket holders in with “false promises.” EHL Funding filed a third lawsuit, this one claiming that Ja Rule and McFarland had fallen behind on payments for a $3 million loan.